[JURIST] A federal judge has ruled that a decision by the Arizona License Plate Commission [AZ DOT website] to reject "choose life" license plates supported by pro-life groups in the state did not violate the constitutional rights of the groups. District Judge Paul G. Rosenblatt held that the Commission's decision did not violate the free speech and equal protection rights of the Arizona Life Coalition [advocacy website], which had sought special license plates. The Arizona Life Coalition said it would appeal the ruling to the US 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. The Coalition had sought the plates under a state program [ALC backgrounder] allowing specialty license plates. Other courts around the country have previously ruled on the issuance of special license plates before. Last year, the US 4th Circuit Court of Appeals struck down anti-abortion plates [JURIST report] in South Carolina, while the US 5th Circuit Court of Appeals in April upheld similar plates [JURIST report] against a challenge in Louisiana. AP has more.
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